East Side-Strathcona, Vancouver — Where I live you might find a hospital gown abandoned on a fire hydrant. Didn’t need that. You might find a tent at the local park where the kids used to play, and the old people used to do their tai chi. Not now. (But this is Canada. Tents? Yes…

A beginner’s guide — I began a newsletter on Substack in April 2021, and then went “paid” with it June 1. My publication, the Unschool for Writers, has now averaged about $500/month income for me, and this is just the first — and growing — five months. Let’s start Q&A, and please ask any…

But could we do it? — More often than not, when one brings up the topic of equality and equity between women and men, the wage gap is cited. Then the talk is of the need for more women leaders. People who grasp that numbers and statistics don’t always tell actual stories — rarely, in fact…

Let’s resurrect the idea of tithe, and keep art in our lives — This past summer, this was the one way I heard live music: in the park, and on the beach, with a jazz standards group. Bring a blanket and bottle, enjoy the setting sun, the warmth on my back. Listening to tunes that have sustained for decades. The idea of tithing…

News flash — you are not alone in the world! — A few years ago, my city decided to dedicate entire half blocks to co-op cars. A good idea. But that space is almost always empty. Maybe the thinking is “Build it and they will come.” Fair enough. I hope they do. Soon. Then the city marked off most of the…

Report cards for all — Teachers have so much to learn from students — always. I know this from my time teaching in post-secondary, when I made full use of my end-of-term teaching and course evaluations. More on the “how” of that below. Even kindergarten students There’s no reason why secondary and elementary learners can’t take part in…

When you’re trying to be healthier — My doctor hauled me into her office mid-January post blood work. “Your cholesterol is out of sight. You need to go on medication… NOW!” I was shocked. Me? The person who lost thirty pounds a decade ago, and started to move, and has kept most of the pounds off and…

The Pen Might be Mightier… but Peace is the Mightiest — I walk by the sign outside the co-operative community centre in my neighbourhood, a place of truly diverse people who live in or close to some of the most challenging urban blocks in this country of Canada. While firearms are not quite the issue here as they are in the…

Oh go on — buy the card! — I was married for almost thirty years. And when I was fifty-one, my husband died of ALS after being ill for not even a year. I was left with a big empty house, three grown and half-grown sons… and a handful of Valentine’s cards. No, not even a handful. Because…